Cheesy Funeral Potatoes Casserole Recipe

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These cheesy funeral potatoes are the perfect side dish for any gathering! A popular casserole that has been common at potlucks and family meals for decades, this version is a family favorite you will be able to whip up easily with little effort. Because they are easy to make and everyone will love them, you'll find these cheesy potatoes on your menu regularly!

fork of potatoes held above marbled plate with cheesy potatoes

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Cheesy Funeral Potatoes
What Do I Serve Funeral Potatoes With?
Ingredients
Handy Kitchen Tools
How to Make Funeral Potatoes
Frequently Asked Questions
More Potato Recipes
📖 Recipe

Cheesy Funeral Potatoes

This classic potluck casserole dish is a perfect comfort food meal to make any weeknight. While it's most often seen as part of a potluck or buffet spread, I love that it is so easy to make as a side dish for any meal on my menu. My favorite part of this recipe is that it can be served at breakfast, lunch, or dinner!

Whether you are sharing at your own dinner table or making it to give to someone going through a rough time, this cheesy and creamy potato dish is one everyone loves. It feels like you are being hugged from the inside out!

round white plate by glass baking dish of funeral potatoes on wood desk

What Do I Serve Funeral Potatoes With?

Funeral potatoes are made as comfort food. That makes sense when you think of their assumed origins of them. However, because they are simply delicious, you can serve them with just about anything.

Whether it is beside a classic buttermilk fried chicken or a serving of our parmesan chicken thighs, it's the nice creamy contrast you want. It works well alongside our roasted chicken with garlic butter, just as well as it does with a serving of the foolproof pork loin.

If you're thinking of serving them as part of breakfast or brunch, they are great paired beside a vegetable bacon frittata, some basic oven-baked bacon, and homemade yogurt. Of course, the funeral potatoes are great with any brunch spread that includes things like breakfast bread or donuts too.

gray table holding round white plate of funeral potatoes and oval clear baking dish

Ingredients

2 (12 oz) packaged cubed hash browns (680 g)
2 cups sour cream (480 g)
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup (305 g)
1 cup butter (227 g)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (166 g)
2 cups cornflakes (48 g)

Optional:

½ chopped yellow onion (mixed in with potatoes)
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese (sprinkled over top of crumbs on top of casserole)

wooden spoon in glass baking dish of potatoes

Handy Kitchen Tools

Note: If using fresh potatoes, you can use the vegetable chopper to make even cuts in the potatoes.

close up image of plate of funeral potatoes

How to Make Funeral Potatoes

Begin by thawing your potatoes and draining any excess water from them. Then melt the butter, dividing it into 2 equal portions, and set it aside. Preheat the oven to 350°F/176°C and then prepare your chosen baking dish (9"x13" or 10"oval) with a light spray of non-stick spray or butter then set it aside.

In a large bowl, combine the sour cream, cheese, cream of chicken soup, ½ cup of melted butter, salt, and black pepper. Stir this together until combined well and all ingredients are evenly distributed.

white bowl of cheese mixture with blue spoon

Add in the thawed potatoes, and if desired, chopped onion at this time.

Spread the potato and cheese mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish and set it aside.

spatula spreading funeral potatoes in oval glass baking dish

Pulse the plain cornflakes until crumbs, then pour them over the top of the casserole. If desired, you can add additional cheese at this time.

spoon spreading cornflakes on top of potatoes

Bake the funeral potatoes for 40 to 50 minutes uncovered until the top is golden brown and bubbling.

wooden spoon on top of glass oval dish of potatoes

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Are They Called Funeral Potatoes?

While no one knows for sure why this potato casserole is called Funeral potatoes, it is assumed it is because this is one of those dishes that is often served at a funeral luncheon.

You can see people saying, you know I love those potatoes from the funeral and that slowly becoming can you make the funeral potatoes? Either way, this has become a casserole that is used for occasions like funerals or similar potlucks. It's also a common dish to prepare and bring to those who have had surgery, a new baby, or otherwise might be under the weather and could use support in the form of a meal provided.

What Can I Use Instead of Corn Flakes for Funeral Potatoes?

If you don’t have corn flakes or don’t want to use them, you can use crushed up Ritz crackers, potato chips, or even Fritos! The corn flakes give the potatoes that crispy topping so you want to make sure you are using something that will give that same crispy crunch.

Can I Use Fresh Potatoes Instead of Frozen Hashbrowns?

For this recipe, we recommend using frozen hash browns. The frozen ones hold up better in the casserole and don’t get as mushy.

If you use fresh potatoes, you will want to parboil them for about 5 minutes before adding them to the casserole so they cook evenly. Make sure to cube the potatoes into small ½" or smaller chunks that are even sizers so they do cook evenly in the casserole.

Can I Make Funeral Potatoes Ahead of Time?

Yes! One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it is a perfect make-ahead recipe. Not only can you assemble this, cover it, and refrigerate it for up to 2 days before baking, it can be frozen.

Can I Freeze Funeral Potatoes?

When freezing this potato casserole, I recommend using an aluminum baking dish and then covering the top with plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. Label the recipe and freezer for up to 4 months before use.

When you are ready to bake, the casserole can be thawed overnight in the refrigerator and baked as directed in this recipe. Alternately, it can be baked from frozen for a longer time period of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

image looking down on square potatoes on marble plate

More Potato Recipes

Potatoes are a personal favorite vegetable to have on hand. While it is starch, it is a great choice as a base for many flavors and meals. Below are a few more of my favorite recipes that feature potatoes. Whether you want another casserole or a simple classic side, this list has something for you. Make sure that you bookmark the recipes, print out the recipes, or pin them to a relevant Pinterest board.

📖 Recipe

Yield: 8

Cheesy Funeral Potatoes Casserole Recipe

Nothing beats the delicious cheesy goodness of funeral potatoes casserole! An easy recipe that is an ideal side for any meal!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

2 (12 oz) packaged cubed hash browns (680 g), thawed
2 cups sour cream (480 g)
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of chicken soup (305 g)
1 cup butter, divided (227 g)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (166 g)
2 cups cornflakes (48 g)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F/176°C and lightly spray your baking dish with non-stick spray or grease with butter then set it aside. If not already, thaw the potatoes and drain off any excess liquid. Then melt ½ cup of the butter and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, and ½ cup melted butter until the mixture is combined. To the soup mixture, add the salt, black pepper, and cheese and stir to combine.
Now, combine this with the thawed potatoes until they are incorporated well. Pour this into the prepared baking dish and set it aside.
Now, use a food processor to pulse the cornflakes until crumbs. Mix the cereal crumbs with the remaining ½ cup of butter.
Spread this crumb mixture over the top of the casserole.
Bake, uncovered, for 40 to 50 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.